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Department, Institute
Year of publication
- 2017 (4) (remove)
Keywords
- Eye Tracking (1)
- Gaze Behavior (1)
- Head-mounted Display (1)
- Intelligent virtual agents (1)
- Inventory (1)
- Multiuser (1)
- Serious Games (1)
- Social Virtual Reality (1)
- Synthetic perception (1)
- Usability (1)
Simulating eye movements for virtual humans or avatars can improve social experiences in virtual reality (VR) games, especially when wearing head mounted displays. While other researchers have already demonstrated the importance of simulating meaningful eye movements, we compare three gaze models with different levels of fidelity regarding realism: (1) a base model with static fixation and saccadic movements, (2) a proposed simulation model that extends the saccadic model with gaze shifts based on a neural network, and (3) a user's real eye movements recorded by a proprietary eye tracker. Our between-groups design study with 42 subjects evaluates impact of eye movements on social VR user experience regarding perceived quality of communication and presence. The tasks include free conversation and two guessing games in a co-located setting. Results indicate that a high quality of communication in co-located VR can be achieved without using extended gaze behavior models besides saccadic simulation. Users might have to gain more experience with VR technology before being able to notice subtle details in gaze animation. In the future, remote VR collaboration involving different tasks requires further investigation.
Integration of Multi-modal Cues in Synthetic Attention Processes to Drive Virtual Agent Behavior
(2017)
Simulations and serious games require realistic behavior of multiple intelligent agents in real-time. One particular issue is how attention and multi-modal sensory memory can be modeled in a natural but effective way, such that agents controllably react to salient objects or are distracted by other multi-modal cues from their current intention. We propose a conceptual framework that provides a solution with adherence to three main design goals: natural behavior, real-time performance, and controllability. As a proof of concept, we implement three major components and showcase effectiveness in a real-time game engine scenario. Within the exemplified scenario, a visual sensor is combined with static saliency probes and auditory cues. The attention model weighs bottom-up attention against intention-related top-down processing, controllable by a designer using memory and attention inhibitor parameters. We demonstrate our case and discuss future extensions.
Populating virtual worlds with intelligent agents can drastically improve a user's sense of presence. Applying these worlds to virtual training, simulations, or (serious) games, often requires multiple agents to be simulated in real time. The process of generating believable agent behavior starts with providing a plausible perception and attention process that is both efficient and controllable. We describe a conceptual framework for synthetic perception that specifically considers the mentioned requirements: plausibility, real-time performance, and controllability. A sample implementation will focus on sensing, attention, and memory to demonstrate the framework's capabilities in a real-time game engine scenario. A combination of dynamic geometric sensing and false coloring with static saliency information is provided to exemplify the collection of environmental stimuli. The subsequent attention process handles both bottom-up processing and task-oriented, top-down factors. Behavioral results can be influenced by controlling memory and attention The example case is demonstrated and discussed alongside future extensions.
Inventory design in games is crucial when it comes to managing in-game items efficiently. In multi-user settings, an additional goal is to support awareness concerning a coplayer’s inventory and his/her available actions. Especially in virtual reality (VR), presence and immersion are vital aspects of the experience, suggesting real-world metaphors for interface design. The presented work examines two basic inventory paradigms: an abstract menu-based inventory and a metaphoric virtual belt. Both systems are implemented in a serious game prototype for paramedic training in VR, then evaluated in a between-group design study with paramedic trainees inexperienced in VR technology. While both solutions offer comparable usability and presence scores, the results suggest future optimization.
